Ooshma Garg: Build a Successful Business From a Simple, Delicious Idea

April 30 - On The Dot

Food

FIRST THOUGHT: The Gravy Train

In the classic show MTVCribs, celebs would put on display—you guessed it—their cribs. Many of these home tours involved similar things: seven cars, a lavish pool with a grotto, fancy liquor in the freezer. Many Cribs VIPs would also introduce viewers to their personal shoppers and in-home chefs, and that’s when I would always get jealous. The idea of coming home to groceries in the fridge and a professional cooking up whatever I want truly seems like livin’ large to me. Alas, most of us aren’t born with a silver spoon in our mouths. But maybe that makes us more appreciative of the things and people we do have in our lives.

So, what’s behind that statistic? Do women simply prefer doing the shopping and cooking ourselves? Are men just more lazy or busy? I can say from personal experience that some meal kits feel like more work than they’re worth. A career gal doesn’t always have time to peel and mince garlic while whisking cream, sweating onions and meticulously following a recipe only to find out she’s already missed a few steps. Luckily, today’s Woman to Watch, Ooshma Garg, totally gets it. She’s the dinner hero who created Gobble, a meal-kit service with busy women in mind.

Ooshma’s brilliant concept relies on simple yet flavorful three-step recipes designed to be cooked in one pan and go from kit to table in less than 15 minutes. It’s perfect for hungry folks who don’t want to spend an hour preparing dinner after a long day. Plus, Gobble customers can skip deliveries or modify their preferences. And the meals are actually healthy, with each containing fewer than 1,000 calories. There’s no slicing and dicing, no dirty knives. And unlike many other meal-kit services, Gobble features a delicious array of ethically inspired dishes, from tikka masala and miso ramen to Wagyu beef burgers, mushroom ravioli and even chicken and waffles.

Ooshma is no stranger to the startup world. She launched her first company, Anapata, in her early 20s. As a busy startup CEO, Ooshma rarely had time to eat, not to mention make her own meals. Indeed, she came up with the idea for Gobble during a 1 a.m. McDonald’s munch in the parking lot. In search of a solution for this time crunch and hunger dilemma, she took to Craigslist, seeking chefs willing to create home-cooked meals for just $8 a plate. Seventy-plus people replied to her ad, and before long, she was matching her friends with chefs too. The move sparked a great business idea, and after raising more than $1 million in funding, Ooshma’s Gobble hit the scene. Investors have seen hearty potential in Gobble, having plopped down nearly $30 million in funding thus far.

Ooshma is proof that you never know where your next great idea will come from. Sometimes all it takes is a weary moment in a fast-food parking lot to spark a tasty revolution and create a business that really cooks!